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The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrives in Cyprus tonight for a visit that both sides hope can help move the Cyprus issue forward, although officials are keeping expectations realistic.
The three-day visit will include separate meetings with President Nikos Christodoulides and Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman, a private dinner between the two leaders, and a joint meeting aimed at exploring whether there is room to restart meaningful negotiations.
Before Guterres even sets foot on the island, his personal envoy Maria Angela Holguin is already working behind the scenes.
Holguin is scheduled to meet President Christodoulides at 9:30am today, followed by a meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman at 11am.
Her role is considered crucial, as she has been holding contacts with both sides in an effort to identify possible areas of agreement and prepare the ground for the UN chief’s visit.
A packed schedule for the UN chief
Guterres’ official program begins on Tuesday morning with a meeting with President Christodoulides.
Later in the morning, at 11:45am, he will meet with Erhürman.
The UN chief will then lay a wreath at the Peacekeepers’ Monument outside Ledra Palace, paying tribute to the UN peacekeeping mission that has been present on the island for decades.
At 4pm, he will visit the workshop of the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP), where efforts continue to identify and return the remains of people who disappeared during the conflict.
His afternoon schedule also includes meetings with negotiators, heads of technical committees, and representatives of civil society.
The day will end with a private dinner involving the two leaders at the residence of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Hashim D. Thaci, at Nicosia Airport.
On Wednesday morning, Guterres will hold a joint meeting with Christodoulides and Erhürman before giving a press conference.
Government: “Cautious optimism, but the road is difficult”
The Cyprus government has welcomed the visit but has avoided raising expectations of an immediate breakthrough.
Deputy Government Spokesperson Yiannis Antoniou said the government remains “cautiously optimistic” while recognizing that the path ahead remains long and difficult.
“The historical debt requires perseverance and commitment to the highest goal of liberation from the shackles of occupation,” Antoniou said during a memorial event held by the Asia Community Council marking the anniversaries of the coup and the Turkish invasion.
He said Cyprus is using the current diplomatic momentum with a “constructive attitude” and readiness to restart substantive negotiations that could eventually lead to a lasting and workable solution.
Why this visit matters
The Cyprus talks have been frozen since negotiations collapsed at Crans-Montana in 2017, with repeated efforts to bring the two sides back to the negotiating table failing to produce a breakthrough.
The government believes Guterres’ visit comes at a significant moment, after what it describes as persistent diplomatic efforts to put the Cyprus issue back on the international agenda.
“We do not compromise with occupation and division,” Antoniou said, adding that reunification remains the government’s top priority.
For many Cypriots, however, the question remains the same: can another round of meetings lead to something more than diplomatic statements?
Guterres’ visit may not deliver an immediate solution, but it will show whether there is enough common ground left to restart a process that has been stalled for years.
